Internet Basics
Library! @ Collister
Fall 2008
What is the internet?
A system of interconnected
computers that share information.
There are different ways to share
information over the internet. The world wide
web (www) is just one of them.
Also known as: Things that are not the
web:
-WWW
-Local Area Network LAN
-Web
-Intranet
-‘Net
What can you do on the internet?
Send and receive e-mail
Search for information
Join discussion groups using chat or email
Shop online
Read newspapers, magazines, and books
Watch TV shows and movies
How the internet works
Your computer uses some kind of data
connection (phone, cable, or wireless) to
connect to an internet service provider (ISP).
Connecting to the internet
Dial-up/modem - Uses a phone line and a
modem. When you’re on, your phone is busy.
DSL – runs through your phone line, but your
phone line is available.
Cable – operated by the cable company. No
need to subscribe to cable TV.
Wireless/satellite – operates over radio waves
Browsers:
Different programs (software) that allow you to
navigate the WWW and see and hear text,
graphics, sound, and video.
Internet explorer Firefox
www.microsoft.com www.mozilla.com
How browsers work
You tell the browser which computer you want to
connect to by typing in a website address (URL).
Your browser doesn’t go anywhere. The page comes
to you! (That’s why they call them web servers.)
Title Bar
Menu Bar
Tool Bar
Address Bar
Status Bar
Tips for web addresses (URLs):
-No spaces
-Can usually omit http://
-Press “ENTER” or click “GO”
Navigating
Back Forward
Return to the Return to page you
previous page backed up from
Refresh Stop Home
Reloads, or downloads Stops the browser from Takes you back to
the page again loading the page the “home” page
History Print
See the sites you’ve Make a hard copy of
visited in the current the website
or previous sessions
In newer versions of browsers, you can open more than
one page in the same window.
Close Tab
Websites (AKA webpages)
-Can be a single page or
collection of pages
-Have an address (URL)
ex. http://www.boisepubliclibrary.org
* You need to type a URL exactly for your browser to
locate the desired web page, otherwise you will access
the wrong site or get an error message.
Links:
-Usually underlined, different color
example
- URL will appear in status bar
-Arrow will change to hand
-Can also be images or “buttons”
Searching
Locate information, businesses, organizations, or people on the WWW.
Go to the search engine web site and enter your
search word(s).
Sites may not be about the topic you want; your
search word(s) may appear on the web page in a
different context.
Results are NOT everything on the web. At best you
will be searching 25 - 35% of the web.
Popular Search Engines:
www.google.com www.yahoo.com
www.ask.com www.live.com
Most engines will surround results with
advertisements or sponsored links.
Advertisements
Search
Results
E-mail
Electronic messages or letters, can include
attachments such as pictures or sound files.
Takes mere seconds to reach any destination.
E-mail
Electronic messages or letters, can include
attachments such as pictures or sound files.
Takes mere seconds to reach any destination.
Email Addresses:
-Like URLs, must be typed exactly in order for the message to be delivered.
[email protected]
Recipient’s ID at Domain or “host”
Webmail vs. E-mail Client
Web based email or E-mail software such as Outlook
Webmail allows you to An e-mail client will download
access email from any messages to your computer so
computer hooked up you can read them and
to the internet. compose new mail offline.
Signing up for a free e-mail account
Pick a provider: http://www.gmail.com
http://login.yahoo.com
http://www.hotmail.com
Choose a username: Usually a combination of letters and numbers such as
[email protected]Pick a password that you will remember:
The most secure passwords are a combination of -
1. word(s) not found in the dictionary
2. numbers
3. symbols (!$&.*)
Cautions
Don’t give out personal information
Internet is not regulated, be prepared to see
ideas and images that may offend you.
When shopping, deal only with known, reputable
firms that provide secure connections for
purchasing transactions.
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What’s Next?
Please fill out a short survey about the class. I’d appreciate your
feedback in improving the class and selecting other topics for future
classes.
Class Reservations: 562-4995
Find more computer class info at:
www.boisepubliclibrary.org/About_BPL/Computers/Computer_Classes/
Questions or Comments?
Jeremy Darrington
562-4922
[email protected]
